Normally we divide up the dinner so that someone does appetizers, someone brings salad, someone makes the main course, etc., but this time everyone was assigned a region from the Mediterranean. I was in charge of the Levant. I had also bought a copy of From Tapas to Meze, so I was leafing through my section when I came across a recipe titled “Baked Stuffed Eggplant to Make a Priest Faint”. How could I not make this dish?

North Africa: Bisteeya
A typical Moroccan appetizer that consists of ground chicken (or more traditionally, pigeon) stuffed inside a pocket of phyllo dough and topped with powdered sugar. Very unusual and very tasty.

The Levant: Baked Stuffed Eggplant to Make a Priest Faint
My eggplant dish was stuffed with onions, tomatoes, currents and lots of “dessert” spices like allspice and cinnamon. My only complaint was that it seemed a touch undercooked and just a bit sweet (honey was called for, but I would omit this next time). Considering this was a completely vegetarian dish, it was pretty damn good.

Italy: Homemade Mozzarella with Basil and Tomatoes
The homemade mozzarella didn’t turn out quite how M wanted it to, but she planned ahead and had also bought some absolutely gorgeous goat cheese mozzarella from a farmers’ market. It was layered with perfectly ripe tomatoes and fresh, tender basil.

Southern France:Gnocchi with Roquefort Cream
This dish absolutely blew me away. Growing up Italian (or at least 1/4 Italian), we always made the Christmas gnocchi with potatoes. Apparently, in France, it’s made from milk, butter, flour and eggs—like a cream puff dough. The result was impossibly light and airy gnocchi, smothered in rich, salty and pungent Roquefort cream. I can’t wait to try this dish out on my mom!